If you have suffered income issues due to COVID, you may qualify for assistance with current and back rent
The Oregon Emergency Rental Assistance Program helps eligible low-income households with their past-due rent and utilities. This program uses funds from the federal Emergency Rental Assistance Program, which allocated a collective total of $280 million to Oregon, the City of Portland, and multiple counties in the state. In most cases, approved applications will result in payments made directly to landlords and utility providers. Rent relief funds are available to help tenants pay current rent, as well as back rent. Tenants are strongly encouraged to apply for rent assistance to pay their July and August rents as soon as possible.
Eligibility for rent assistance
You must meet all the below criteria to be eligible:
- You are a renter in Oregon behind on your payments.
- One or more members of your household can demonstrate how the COVID-19 pandemic has directly or indirectly impacted their ability to pay rent or utilities.
- Your annual household income is at or below 80% of the Area Median Income for your household size. Please refer to this link for more information.
How to apply for help
If you or your household receive an eviction notice for nonpayment of rent, call 2-1-1 immediately to learn about rapid-payment rent assistance that may help you avoid eviction. You can begin your application at oregonrentalassistance.org.
Oregon Emergency Rental Assistance Program: Online application portal for statewide rental assistance. Be sure to apply here if you need help paying either your current rent or any back rent that you’ve accrued between April 2020 and June 2021. Processing an application using the state’s portal can take significant time, but a completed application can be used to activate additional eviction protections.
Information about eviction protections
Oregon’s statewide eviction moratorium expired as of June 30, 2021, and is no longer active.
Starting July 1, Oregon Senate Bill 278 provides protection from nonpayment evictions to renters who apply for rent assistance if they provide documentation of their application to their landlords. Eligible Oregon renters may be entitled to 90 days of protection from eviction after providing their landlord with the required notice. The 90 days start when the tenant provides documentation to their landlord of their rent assistance application. Renters can receive the appropriate documentation from the rent assistance provider they are working with.
Tenants should apply for rent assistance immediately if they are unable to pay their rent.
If you have additional questions about how and when to submit evidence of your application, please contact your rent assistance provider or Oregon Law Center(link is external), Community Alliance of Tenants(link is external) or Legal Aid Services of Oregon(link is external).
Please be aware that tenants cannot be evicted for owing rent for the months between April 2020 and June 2021, and have until February 28, 2022, to pay that rent back.